Meet Our Teams

Adriana leads engagement efforts with civil society organizations, fostering collaboration among partners and amplifying their voices to maximize the impact of advocacy and strategic communications campaigns. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Public Relations from FAAP (Fundação Armando Alvares Penteado) and also studied History at USP (University of São Paulo). Additionally, she completed training in Social Project and Program Evaluation at FIA-USP.

Before joining CLUA, Adriana spent nearly a decade as a senior strategist for Greenpeace Brazil’s Amazon campaign before going on to lead the organization’s Food and Agriculture campaign for two years. She also spent four years as a researcher and advocate for social responsibility and sustainable consumption at Idec (Brazilian Institute for Consumer Protection). Earlier in her career, she worked as a qualitative project manager at Instituto Ideafix, specializing in corporate and nonprofit sector communication research.

Aileen is the Chief Program Officer for the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation’s Environmental Conservation program, and leads the foundation’s Conservation and Markets team, responsible for market initiatives on forests and agricultural, oceans and seafood, and conservation and finance.

Prior to joining the foundation, Aileen was an Associate Principal at McKinsey & Company, where she led client engagements in strategy, operation and organizational effectiveness across a wide range of sectors. She has previously served as chair of the board of the Environmental Grantmakers Association and treasurer of the Western Conservation Foundation. She also volunteers with her hometown of Los Altos Hills as a member of the Environmental Initiatives Committee.

Aileen was born and raised on Long Island, New York. She attended Yale University, where she received a B.A. in political science and East Asian studies. She received her J.D. from Harvard Law School and is a member of the California bar.

Ana is responsible for working together with partners to increase visibility of tropical forest issues in Latin America and engaging Spanish speaking audiences.

Ana graduated in Collective Communications Science and Journalism, then worked in radio and instructional design. She spent almost a decade focused on strategic communications with Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. She led territorial participation and capacity building efforts locally as well as advocacy in global climate decision making spaces.

Andrea has worked for 25 years on the technical, social and political aspects of conserving tropical ecosystems, cleaning up supply chains, and defending the rights of forest communities.

Her early experience included managing orangutan research and community conservation efforts at Gunung Palung National Park in West Kalimantan, Indonesia; studying transnational civil society advocacy around extractive projects in Peru, and researching on-farm reforestation strategies in the Panama Canal zone with the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute’s PRORENA initiative.  Between 2006 and 2012, Andrea led the growth of the Environmental Investigation Agency’s Forest Campaign, achieving passage of the 2008 Amendments to the US Lacey Act, conducting investigations of illegal timber trade, corruption and violence against community activists, and advocating for change in national and global climate change policies.

Based in Costa Rica since 2012, Andrea worked at CATIE, one of Central America’s pre-eminent institutions for research and training, where she led monitoring and evaluation for Project Finnfor II to support value chain development for community forestry enterprises and plantation smallholders in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala. As a consultant she has overseen private sector forestry operations and supported strategic planning for non-profits and foundations. She is currently restoring 12 hectares of cattle pasture on the Osa Peninsula to native forest and agroforestry systems.

Andrea received a B.A. from Harvard University and a Master’s in Environmental Science from the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies.

Andrew Davis is a consultant and advisor to the Global Initiative, based in Costa Rica. He has over 15 years of experience in research and program development supporting rights-based approaches in the governance of tropical ecosystems.

Prior to joining CLUA, he worked as a researcher at the PRISMA Foundation where he analyzed the drivers of ecosystem degradation, and the evolution of collective action institutions in communities facing deforestation pressures. This work was performed in close collaboration with indigenous peoples and local communities in Central America and Mexico, and their strategies to secure territorial rights and advance endogenous visions of development.

Prior to working at the PRISMA Foundation, Andrew supported the launch of the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI), providing research and program support for the Initiative, especially in Latin America. Andrew received a B.A. from the University of Colorado, and a Master´s Degree in International Development, with an emphasis on political economy and ecological economics, from American University in Washington, D.C.

Anisa became a consultant to the Climate and Land Use Alliance in 2023 and advises on strategic communications operations.

Prior to joining CLUA, Anisa worked for World Agroforestry Centre in a research enabling role and was actively involved in managing a couple of its international research and development projects aiming for livelihood improvement. And before this role, Anisa was working as administrative officer for several Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) development projects. 

Anisa holds a Landscape Architecture Bachelor Degree from IPB University and is currently pursuing a Master Degree in Social Welfare Organizational Management from University of Indonesia. 

Anita Fiori is an experienced economist with over 20 years of service within international organizations. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree from the Universidade Federal do Rio De Janeiro and subsequently specialized in foreign service with a Master’s degree from Georgetown University and finance from Johns Hopkins University.

In 2001, Ms. Fiori began her career at the National Bank of Brazil (BNDES), where she was responsible for overseeing and coordinating the Institutional Development Plan for microfinance institutions. Following her Master’s degree from Georgetown, she served as a Counselor at the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), representing Brazil and Suriname from 2005 to 2007. In 2008, she joined the World Bank Group as a private sector officer, where she designed, executed, and supervised several projects and programs, with a focus on private sector development, climate, and investment attraction.

In 2013, Ms. Fiori returned to the IDB group as a staff member at the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF). In this role, she advised the General Manager on the process of the MIF’s third replenishment and authored several strategic papers for the Board on behalf of MIF’s management. Five years later, she joined the IDB Lab’s Investments team, where she designed and supervised various loans, equity, and semi-equity and funds operations, with a focus on improving climate, gender equality, and diversity issues. Her last position at the IDB group was at the Board representing the Governments of Brazil and Suriname.

Ms. Fiori is also an active advocate for gender equality and diversity in capital markets in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).Currently Ms. Fiori works as a Principal Investor for the Soros Economic Development Fund where she is responsible for the Fund’s investments in Latin America.

Avecita Chicchón is the program director for the Andes-Amazon Initiative at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

Avecita joins the Foundation with over 25 years of experience in natural resource use, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable development in Latin America, with a particular emphasis on the Amazon. Avecita served as the executive director of the Latin America and Caribbean Program at Wildlife Conservation Society from 2003-2010, where she managed conservation programs in 15 countries that led to significant on-the-ground conservation achievements. Prior to her time at WCS, Avecita was a program officer at the MacArthur Foundation, responsible for grantmaking on conservation and sustainable development issues in Latin America and the Caribbean, and she was the Peru program director at Conservation International.

She received her Ph.D. in Social Anthropology with an emphasis on natural resource use and conservation issues from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida.

Caitlin Giblin is the Senior Advisor on Collaborations for Forests, People, Climate and CLUA, providing operational and strategic support to the Senior Leadership and Initiative Teams in their fundraising efforts with member foundations and new donors.

Caitlin has worked at the intersection of climate action and philanthropy for over fourteen years. Prior to joining CLUA, Caitlin worked at Greenpeace USA in a variety of program and fundraising leadership roles, most recently as the Director of Program Operations and Special Projects. 

Caitlin holds a Master of Arts in Global Environmental Policy from American University and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Providence College. She is based in Washington D.C.

Carl Walker is the Director of Human Resources.

As the Director, Carl is instrumental in cultivating a workplace that thrives on inclusivity, creativity, and a shared dedication to mitigating climate change, benefiting people, and protecting the environment.

Carl’s journey spans over three decades, where he excelled in assisting clients in corporate law. Carl worked in leadership roles as SVP, HR, Chief Legal Officer and Chief of Staff in the private sector. He has developed a unique blend of legal, financial, and human resources expertise. His transition to human resources was marked by a passion for developing organizational cultures, leaders, and people.

Carl holds a Bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Dartmouth College and a Juris Doctor from Rutgers University.

Carolina has deep expertise in developing and implementing strategies to mitigate and adapt to climate change and she has 20 years’ experience working on environmental issues in Brazil. Most recently, she was the Climate Director at WRI Brasil, where she led a program offering research-based pathways to scale a just transition to a low-carbon economy in the Amazon region and in Brazil. Her work in the philanthropic sector includes developing and implementing Porticus Latin America’s sustainability portfolio in Brazil and the Amazon biome.

Carolina holds a Masters in Environment and Development from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a BA in Social Communication from the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro.

Carolina enjoys connecting people with diverse ways of thinking to collaboratively explore climate solutions. As a mother of two sons, Carolina is driven to protect the planet for her children and all future generations.

Carolina Zambrano-Barragán is Director of Programs at the Climate and Land Use Alliance.

For over 15 years, she has worked at the intersection of climate action, human rights, and biodiversity conservation. She has held leadership positions in the public, philanthropic, and non-profit sectors contributing to sustainability, advancing rights, and climate resilience in Latin America and globally.

Prior to joining CLUA, Carolina was the Climate Justice Lead at Hivos, and previously, their program director for All Eyes on the Amazon and Amazon Indigenous Health Route. Before that, Carolina led climate, environment and innovation policies and programs in Ecuador; she was Vice Minister of Science, Technology, and Innovation; Undersecretary of Climate Change; and Director of Environmental Policy for the City of Quito. She also managed Avina Foundation’s Sustainable Cities program in Latin America.

Carolina started her career as a biologist and has a Master of Public Administration (MPA) from Harvard University and a Master of Environmental Management from Yale University.

Cecilia is a Brazilian Geographer with a master’s degree in Environmental Sciences from Yale University and PhD in Sustainable Development from University of Brasília (Brazil). Prior to joining CLUA, Cecilia worked with local and international organizations on projects related to Indigenous and Traditional community rights, environmental governance, and development alternatives aligned with biodiversity conservation and social well-being. She was previously a researcher, having collaborated in the Sustainable Amazon Network, first as a field assistant in a large multidisciplinary project, and later as a postdoctoral fellow at Lancaster University.